NASA Astronauts Ponder Future After Space Shuttles Stop Flying

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With NASA retiring its space shuttle program after three decades
of service, American astronauts will face a gap in spaceflight
until commercial vehicles are deemed safe and ready to take
spaceflyers to and from the International Space Station and other
potential destinations in low-Earth orbit.

But with no space shuttles to fly, and at least several years
before the commercial industry gets going, what will happen to
NASA's astronaut corps ?

"There's a lot going on. We're going to continue to man the space
station for at least the next decade. We've also got our Orion
MPCV crew vehicle that we're working on at NASA … commercial
providers eventually working on commercial transportation. Chris
[Ferguson] and I would like to contribute where we can," Atlantis
pilot Doug Hurley said. Ferguson is commanding the shuttle
Atlantis' STS-135 mission – NASA's last-ever shuttle flight.

Atlantis launched July 8 to the International Space Station
on a 13-day mission to deliver critical supplies to the orbiting
outpost. The orbiter is scheduled to land at the Kennedy Space
Center in Florida in the predawn hours on Thursday (July 21).
When Atlantis' wheels roll to a stop for the final time, the
shuttle program will effectively come to a close.

Moving beyond low-Earth orbit

NASA is retiring its orbiter fleet to focus on deep-space
exploration to destinations like an asteroid and Mars. The agency
and its partners are already hard at work developing a capsule,
called the
Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV), which will be used for
future exploration missions.

For some astronauts, having the opportunity to be a part of
NASA's transition is exciting. And, despite the prospect of
having to wait several years before American astronauts are once
again launched from U.S. soil, some think there is a great value
to remaining with the astronaut corps.

"The decision to retire the shuttle was made a long time ago,"
astronaut Cady Coleman, who recently completed a long duration
stint on the space station, told SPACE.com. "The decision to have
this gap in American capability to launch people into space by
ourselves was made a long time ago. And now my job as part of the
astronaut corps is to live and work in this situation."

NASA will also
continue to fly American astronauts to the space station,
where they can gain valuable spaceflight and scientific
experience. Others are lured by their desire to be a part of
exploration missions beyond low-Earth orbit.

"I think it's really based on each individual within the office
and what their families desire, where they want to live, and what
they want to do after they've decided they've done what they
wanted to do at the astronaut office," Hurley said during
in-flight interviews. "For me, personally, we've talked about
this before. I'd love to stay and help out. We have plenty of
flying opportunities aboard [the space station]. From my
standpoint, it's a pretty exciting time to be here."

Astronaut corps retirees

Last week, astronaut Steve Lindsey announced his departure from
NASA to pursue a career within the aerospace industry. Lindsey, a
retired colonel in the U.S. Air Force and a veteran of five space
shuttle missions, including the final flight of Discovery in
February, parted ways with the agency on July 15.

"Steve's a consummate leader and has been a great role model
within the corps," Peggy Whitson, chief of the Astronaut Office,
said in a statement. "His calm demeanor and steady presence has
been invaluable to not only his shuttle mission crews but also
our office as a whole. I know he will be a great asset to the
next team privileged to work with him."

Last month, Mark Kelly, commander of NASA's second-to-last
shuttle mission — the STS-134 flight of Endeavour — also
announced his retirement from the agency, effective Oct. 1.
Kelly stated that his retirement was driven by the desire to
spend more time with his family. He will also continue to focus
on the recovery of his wife, Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle
Giffords, from a gunshot wound to the head that she sustained in
an assassination attempt in early January.

Still, Ferguson said he understands why some astronauts will
leave NASA after the space shuttles are grounded for good.

"With regard to attrition, a lot of our office — probably about a
third of our office — is former military pilots," he explained.
"Pilots like to do what pilots like to do, and that's fly
airplanes. I can certainly understand. Everyone has their own
personal preferences, and there'll be a lull in piloting
opportunities."

Ferguson himself has stated that he has not made immediate plans
for his future following the STS-135 mission. In what will be a
dynamic period of change, others are taking a wait-and-see
approach.

Astronaut Stephen Robinson, a veteran of four shuttle flights,
told SPACE.com he started working for NASA before the space
shuttle fleet ever launched on its first mission in 1981. He
remembers well the gap between the end of the Apollo program in
1975 and the start of the shuttle era. [ Video:
NASA's First Space Shuttle ]

While there are some similarities between then and now, he's
excited about NASA's future plans.

"I kind of want to see what the transition is going to be like,
you know," Robinson told SPACE.com. "I'm not sure I’m going
to be getting my fifth mission when other guys are waiting for
their first and second mission."

Robinson served as the lead spacecraft communicator during this
final shuttle flight, talking with the crew of Atlantis from
NASA's Mission Control center in Houston, and has plenty of other
duties on the ground that keep him at NASA.